


Black Widow and the God of Mischief

by Superimmunegirl



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Humor, Sneezing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2018-08-25
Packaged: 2019-07-02 06:06:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15790512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Superimmunegirl/pseuds/Superimmunegirl
Summary: Natasha Romanov does not have time to be sick with a cold. Loki's magic can help - but is the handsome trickster's cure worth the risk?





	Black Widow and the God of Mischief

**Author's Note:**

> Some imaginary place in the Avengers timeline. Written for a specialized audience but hopefully some general fans may enjoy too!

"Atishooo!" Natasha Romanoff sneezed into a ball of tissues. She swore under her breath, blew her runny nose, and tried to focus again on the document on her screen. She'd had a scratchy throat yesterday and woke up sneezing this morning. She was working on a plan for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s operations in the former Soviet republics that she was intent on finishing, so she downed some Dayquil and settled in to the intelligence lab for the day. But the cold kept getting worse, and a second dose of Dayquil didn't seem to touch it.

Just as she was able to focus in again, she heard boisterous voices down the hall. The boys, fresh from training.

"Hey Nat, you want lunch?" asked Hawkeye.

"No thanks, I'm going to keep at this for a while," she said, trying to not sound as sick as she felt. "I really want to get it done by Friday."

"How's your cold?" he asked, as the others came in behind them.

"Not great, but I'll live," she said with a tepid smile.

"You sound awful, Nat," said Steve. "You think you've got the flu?"

"No, it's just - achooo! It's jusd a code," she said, and blew her nose. "I don't have a fever or anything."

"Jarvis, what's Black Widow's temperature?" asked Bruce.

"One hundred point four degrees fahrenheit." responded the AI system. Bruce raised an eyebrow at Natasha and she gritted her teeth in annoyance.

"Seriously Nat, go to bed," said Steve. "That strategic plan can wait."

"I'm fine guys, I just really want to finish this and get it off of my plate. I'm almost done with this section, and then I will go to bed, I promise."

"You're not going to convince her, Cap," said Hawkeye. "She's been brainwashed into never missing a deadline. Best thing to do is leave her alone so she can finish."

"Hey! What are you doing in there, with her germs?" said Tony Stark, who had just come down the hall with Thor. "She's in quarantine. Out, out, robots and gods only in there."

"Shut up, Tony," said Hawkeye. "You let us know if you need anything, OK?"

"Will do, thanks," she said, and they walked away...all but Thor.

"Natasha,” he said, when the others were out of earshot, “My, ah...my brother Loki knows a spell that can ease your symptoms. It is not a cure - but it is something."

"Really?"

"Yes. You would do well to seek his help," he said with a broad smile. "Tell him I sent you."

Natasha shook her head as Thor departed.  She did not like the idea of Loki doing magic on her. Months ago, they had an epic confrontation with Galactus, and Loki offered to join forces with them. But Tony did not trust him, so he had Dr. Strange place a binding spell on Loki so that he could not betray or harm the Avengers. It was supposed to be temporary, but then, to the surprise of everyone, Loki asked him to make it permanent. Supposedly Loki said that his worst impulses had only ever brought him grief, and he would rather be prevented from acting on them. Much like a drug addict, Natasha thought. Thor was overjoyed, and trusted Loki as if his endless series of betrayals had never happened. But Natasha was cautious. Letting the God of Chaos work his magic on her, just to get out of a cold, did not seem like a good idea.

Natasha worked doggedly on her project. She ordered food from the kitchen and had half a bowl of soup that she could barely taste. Then to her dismay, she found she had made a major mistake, and most of the work she had done for the last hour was useless. She groaned and put her aching head in her hands. She knew she should give up and go to bed, but Hawkeye was right - she actually had been conditioned to never miss a deadline, and the thought of doing so made her skin crawl. But the letters on the screen swam before her watery eyes. She shivered, and then a tickle started in her nose - "ahhhCHOO! Atchoo! Atchooo!" she sneezed into a hastily grabbed handful of tissues. "Ugh..." she groaned, and blew her nose. "Jarvis, what's my temperature?" she asked.

"Your temperature is one hundred point nine degrees fahrenheit."

"Fuck," she muttered, and got up to find Loki.

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Loki was reading when she found him.

"Natasha," Loki said, "To what do I owe the pleasure?”

"I'm sick," she replied, hoping she sounded more matter-of-fact than pathetic. "And I really need to feel better. Thor said you had a spell that could help."

"Did he?" Loki said, looking...amused? "Well, I've never been very interested in the healing arts, but I do know one spell that could be of use."

"If it's any better than DayQuil, I'm willing to try it....ACHOO!!!"

"Gesundheit."

"Thank you," she said, blowing her reddened nose. Loki just continued to look at her, apparently considering something. What was he waiting for?

"Natasha..." Loki finally said, "This spell requires that I kiss you."

"You're joking."

"Not at all. A kiss to make it better," he said with a trickster's smile.

"You can't possibly want to kiss me like this."

"I don't mind, I don't get sick. And I promise you, you will feel better."

Natasha stared at him, exasperated. Now she understood Thor's overly-broad smile when he said Loki could help her. But anything was better than this cold.

"Fine, then," she said. He smiled, got up, and closed the distance between them. He cupped her face in his hands, closed his eyes and whispered words in a strange language. She felt the stirring of magic around her. He leaned in and he kissed her.

A wave of powerful arousal swept through her. He kissed her deeply and held her closely, and before she knew what she was doing, she was kissing him back and pressing passionately into his body. She finally broke the kiss and said, gasping, "Loki, what the fuck?"

He laughed. "Feeling better?"

Her mind was racing and her body surging with passion - she felt wonderful. Somewhere in the distance she could still tell, still feel that she was sick, but it was so overpowered by desire that it hardly mattered.

"The spell works by taking your feelings of illness and transforming them into - more pleasant ones," Loki explained.

"Loki, that's - not what I wanted! How is this supposed to help me get my work done?"

"Your work?" he laughed. "No, Natasha, you won't be able to get anything done. You'll be far too distracted." He caressed her cheek and she gasped with pleasure. "You'll need to find someone to go to bed with, otherwise it's maddening. Oh it doesn't have to be me, although I am willing," he said. "If you prefer, there's Barton - there's a history there, but of course he's married - Tony Stark is terrified of germs, my brother's not your type, although he'd do in a pinch - Captain America is probably too upstanding to take advantage of the situation, and Bruce is - well - difficult. And then again, there's me," he said with that wicked smile.

"Loki...." she said breathlessly, "WHY can't you just do a straightforward healing spell?"

"I'm the God of Mischief, Natasha. Nothing I do is ever straightforward. But, I see you are uncomfortable," he said, regretfully. "It's completely up to you. You can either feel this way," he said, stroking her hair and causing her to shiver with desire, "...or this way." And with a slight gesture, Loki removed the spell and the full force of her illness came crashing back. Her head hurt, her body hurt, everything felt awful. She swayed with the sudden shock of it, and Loki reached out to steady her and guided her to sit down on the couch with him.

"Oh dear, you must feel terrible,” he said, "I think you had better let me take care of you. You will enjoy it, I promise you that. And it’s so much better than the alternative."

"You have never - I don't - why do you want to have sex with me now?"

"I've always wanted to have sex with you, Natasha. This is simply a good opportunity.”

She opened her mouth as if to speak, but instead, turned away and sneezed forcefully into her damp tissues. "EhhhTCHOO!" She blushed and blew her nose, making her head throb. This was ridiculous. It wasn't like she hadn't ever thought about sex with Loki - she definitely had, but in a safe, late night, never-gonna-happen way. But the echo of how she had felt a moment ago was extremely compelling, and there was no question - she wanted to feel that way again. She looked at the potential complications: falling in love? She didn't see it, on either side. Workplace awkwardness? Worth it. Betrayal and death?

"Jarvis, is the binding spell on Loki still active?"

"Affirmative."

She looked back at Loki and he smiled.

"Come, Natasha," he said. "Let me take you to bed."

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------

They kissed hungrily as soon as they got to her room. She was on fire, she wanted his kisses everywhere, she wanted him all around her and deep inside her.

"This," Loki said, close to her ear, as he undressed her, "Is how it's going to be. I am going to do whatever I want to you, however I want, as hard as I want, and you are going to beg me for more." She moaned; this was exactly what she liked, how did he know? Did he know from when he had possessed Hawkeye?

He got her into bed and first went down on her, his silver tongue bringing her off in a matter of minutes. She was still sick and had to keep a tissue pressed to her nose half the time, but he didn't seem to care. Then he was inside her, pinning her wrists to the bed with her legs wrapped around his hips until she saw stars. After only moments of recovery, which mostly consisted of her blowing her nose, he started again. "Are you ready?" Natasha asked, quizzically. "I'm a god," he replied. "I'm always ready."

After that third time, the fever pitch of sex softened. Loki kissed her with surprising tenderness and held her closely to him. Natasha smiled and nestled comfortably into his embrace. What do you know, she thought. The God of Chaos likes to cuddle after sex. She was in a heavenly cloud of pleasure, only interrupted by the tickle in her runny nose. Loki handed her the box of tissues just in time, and she sneezed again and again - "Etchoo! Atchoo! Ahhhh...ahh...CHOO!"

"Gesundheit." The softly accented way he said it made it sound like the blessing it was. He pulled her to him once more and kissed the top of her head.  "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Wonderful," she said.

"Good," he said, giving her a squeeze and another kiss. "Something to eat?"

"I'm not hungry," said Natasha, tracing her fingers along his chest.

"No, you wouldn't be. People under this enchantment tend to forget about things like food and sleep, which can be dangerous, and occasionally fatal. Therefore," he said with a smile and a languid kiss, "you will eat something."

Natasha relented and ordered chicken soup, then suffered another sneezing fit. "Loki, Is there a story behind this spell?" she asked, blowing her nose. "It seems oddly specific."

He laughed. "I learned it from a human sorceress, centuries ago. Dazzlingly beautiful woman...with very strange tastes. It comes in handy every now and again."

"I still don't get why you would be interested when I'm this sick," she said.

"You underestimate how attractive you are, Natasha. Besides, I find your vulnerability rather...endearing."

Natasha felt a little flutter of emotion in response, which she didn’t trust at all. "You're being very sweet," she said, almost suspiciously.

Loki laughed. "Oh yes, I can be very affectionate. Don't question it, Natasha. Just enjoy it."

But she couldn't help but question it. Black Widow was an expert psychological profiler, and it was not something she could turn off, even in moments like these. His dominance during sex was not surprising, but the sweetness afterwards didn't quite fit with the mental profile she had developed. The soup arrived via service bot, and even as they ate and talked, Natasha found herself intrigued by his little gestures of caretaking, like handing her tissues, or pulling the covers up around her when she shivered from her fever. He was surprisingly natural at it. She might have probed him a little, but instead she filed those observations away to analyze at a time when she didn't want to fuck him quite so badly. When she had eaten as much as she could, they kissed, and kissed some more. She began stroking him again and guiding him to her.

"One more time," he admonished, "And then sleep. Remember, you are more ill than you feel."

She pulled his hips toward her.

"Don't worry. I'll make it count," he said.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Avengers began gathering for their breakfast meeting, and they were joined by Loki. Apparently he had tried to get out of it but Tony insisted.

As Loki walked in, Thor looked up at him expectantly. Loki casually avoided his gaze as he walked around the kitchen but eventually relented and met his older brother's eyes. His expression told Thor exactly what he wanted to know.

"Ha! I knew it! You dog, you. Ha!"

"Thor, for gods' sake...."

"I totally set that up for you. You owe me, brother! Ha!"

"What are you talking about?" asked Tony.

"Oh, nothing, just - nothing," Thor said, as he took another bite from his plate. Everyone shrugged, and went back to what they were doing.

"He had sex with Natasha!" said Thor, beaming.

Loki covered his head with his hand, exasperated, as everyone said some version of "What??"

"Brother, do you even have one tiny particle of discretion at your disposal...?" asked Loki. "Just one?"

"No, that's your department, " Thor said, his smile unabashed.

"Wait, what - what is going on here?" asked Tony. "You had sex with Nat?"

"Last night? She's sick," said Hawkeye. "What, did you cast a spell on her or something?"

"Yes!" said Thor. "It's hilarious - wait, listen -" he said as Clint, Steve and Bruce rushed toward Loki, ready to fight. Thor and Tony got between them. Loki put up his hands and laughed delightedly at the trouble he was causing.

“Come now, that’s really not fair, I can’t defend myself. I can’t harm any of you.”

“Well it looks like you harmed her!” shouted Clint.

“I did not. I cast a spell, at her request, to make her feel better. And the only such spell I have makes the subject feel...oh, how shall I put it? Romantic, instead of sick."

"She never would have asked for that," said Hawkeye, looking murderous.

"Oh, but she did."

"Settle down, everyone!" said Tony. "Jarvis, welfare check on Natasha Romanoff."

"Natasha Romanoff has a viral upper respiratory infection and a fever of 100.1 degrees fahrenheit."

"is she under any enchantments?"

"I am unable to answer due to privacy settings."

"Is she under any enchantments against her will?"

"Negative."

"You see?" said Loki. "It was her choice. I offered to fetch any one of you to satisfy her needs while she is under the spell, but," he shrugged apologetically, "She preferred me."

"What do you know about this, Thor?" asked Steve.

"I told her he had a spell that could help."

"Did you tell her the details?"

"No, of course not! She never would have gone to him if I had. What?" he asked as Tony groaned and the others reacted angrily.

"OK," said Tony, "We're going to have to schedule a little HR workshop, first thing Monday morning, on the finer points of consent. It's a thing these days. You two are going to be our star pupils. In the meantime, Jarvis says she's fine, so let's not kill anyone until we've had a chance to talk to Nat."

"I'm going up there now," said Clint.

\---------------------

"Sex with Loki just seems like such a bad, bad, decision," said Hawkeye to Natasha, now that she had assured him she hadn't been forced. He sat on the edge of her bed while she blew her red nose.

"I don't know what to tell you, Clint," she sighed, wiping her nose. "I wanted it. And it's been amazing. If it gets weird afterwards, well, it gets weird. Nothing I can't handle."

"I'm not worried about it getting weird, I'm worried about it getting...dangerous! Like him taking over your mind or magically enslaving you or something."

"The binding spell's still active. I really think it's OK, Clint. But I'm glad you have my back, just in case.

"Always," he said, and started to embrace her but Natasha stopped him.

"Not right now," she said, her color rising and her breath quickening.

"Oh. Um, sorry."

"And, um...."

"Yes?"

"Tell Tony that Loki is just going to have to skip that meeting."

\---------------------------------

"Not one day," said Natasha, when Loki came back in. "Not even one minute of keeping it a secret. Thor is..."

"Insufferable?"

"Yes."

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees it."  He sat down on the bed and kissed her. She sighed with pleasure. "How are you feeling?"

"Still sneezing, but I think my fever is down."

"Good. We'll have you well again in no time."

They made love again and again, but with Natasha feeling better, the arousal was a little less intense. They spent more time talking in between. Loki told her disparaging stories about growing up with Thor, making her laugh. They actually talked about Earth politics, which Natasha was an expert in and Loki was fascinated by. And she slept. It was wonderful.

\---------------------------------

The next morning, Natasha and Loki kissed passionately in the shower. They had had two days of torrid sex, but now she had been fever-free for almost 24 hours and needed to report to SHIELD. They were putting off the removal of the spell until the last minute. She tried to make it last but all too soon they both climaxed, panting and moaning and clinging to each other in the water and steam.

"Oh, you are an enchanting woman," said Loki, breathlessly. Despite herself, Natasha's heart gave a little skip. She kissed him and then disengaged, soaping away all traces of their affair. They toweled each other off, getting distracted by kisses.

"You'd better do it now," said Natasha, looking at the clock. Loki sighed and made that slight gesture, and the spell was gone.

"Ugh," said Natasha, wincing a bit. The intense waves of passion she had ridden for the last two days were gone, replaced by the unpleasant, stuffy aftereffects of a bad head cold. And, Natasha realized, shifting uncomfortably, a certain amount of soreness.

"How do you feel?"

"Not horrible, good enough for meeting with Fury. I'll feel better once I get used to it."

Twenty minutes later she was dressed, dosed with Dayquil, and ready to go to work.

"Loki...thank you for everything," she said. "For the sex, and for taking care of me. It was wonderful."

"It was my pleasure."

"So what comes after this? Are we done, or...are we going to do this again? Without the spell?"

"I see no reason to stop," he said. And for the first time they kissed with no magic. And it still felt wonderful.

\--------------------------------

When Natasha came back that night, the Avengers were hanging out after dinner -  minus Loki.

"Walking a little funny there, Widow," said Tony with a smirk. "Are you all...unensorcelled now?"

"Yep. And just for the record, everyone - no regrets. It was amazing. End of story."

"It is as I said!" declared Thor. "My brother is a worthy lover. I do not need to go to a human resources training."

"Couldn't hurt, Thor," she said, still annoyed with him.

"So is this, like, going to be a thing now?" asked Bruce. "Are you guys an item?"

"EhhhTCHHH!" sneezed Steve into cupped hands, saving Natasha from answering the question. "EhhhTCHOO! AhTCHOOO!" He sighed and reached into his pocket for a handkerchief, as everyone blessed him.

"You're getting her cold, aren't you," said Tony, backing away.

"Yes," he said, wiping his nose.

"Why does no-one respect the concept of quarantine?"

"Quarantine yourself, Tony," said Clint. "I've got a sore throat too."

"I'm sorry, guys," said Natasha sympathetically.

"Maybe you two should get Loki to do his spell on you," said Bruce. "At least you, Clint, just go home to your wife, have a nice couple of days..."

"Well, he has to kiss you," said Nat with a smile. "That's how the spell is cast."

" _Hard_ pass," said Clint.

"I would do it," said Tony. "I'd do it in a second. I have zero problem."

After a drink and more chatting with her teammates, Natasha headed up to her room. She was still tired and coughing from the cold, although generally feeling much better. She passed Loki's quarters. She was tempted to buzz him, but that would be weird...or would it be weird not to? They just spent two days in bed together. Should she just check in to say good night? No, she decided, and continued to her room. But after a while she decided to call him on the monitor.

"Hi," she said, "I just got back and wanted to...say goodnight. Since I didn't see you downstairs."

"Well. Goodnight, then," he said. He was smiling but it looked strained. Shit, she thought. Wrong call.

"All right. Well, sleep well, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Ah...Natasha?"

"Yes?"

"We've just spent a lot of time together. I think i could probably do with a break of a few days."

"Of course. Whatever you want."

"Thank you. Good night."

Click.

Natasha took a deep, steadying breath. I am an Avenger, she told herself. I am a highly trained super-assassin. I am the Black Widow.

And I do not cry over stupid shit like this.

\---------------------------

“It’s a Skrull ship,” said Nick Fury on the monitor. It was just after 6 AM and they’d all been awakened by the call to action. “No survivors as far as we can tell, but their shielding is still active so we can’t be sure they’re not still alive in there.”

“Can your guys keep an eye on it until we arrive?” asked Natasha.

“Can do, just get there soon.”

“On it,” Tony said, and turned to his team. “Thor, Loki, Widow, Hulk, you’re with me. Cap and Hawkeye, hold down the fort.”

“Tony, be serious - “ protested Steve, hoarse and congested.

“Look, there are no survivors. Simple mission, we got this. You guys stay here and try not to sneeze all over the control panel - got it?”

“I’m not arguing,” said Clint, sounding just as bad. “Come on Cap, we’re both sick. Let them handle this one.”

The team boarded the jet.

“We’re en route,” said Natasha at the controls. “Anything new on the ground?”

“Negative,” said Fury.

Natasha wished there were. Anything to distract her from the fact that Loki had not yet said a word to her and wouldn’t even look at her. She stole a backwards glance at him, and he was just staring straight ahead, not talking to anyone. Why was this necessary? Natasha fumed. It didn’t make any sense. All he had to do was say he wanted it to be over. That would have been fine. Why be a jerk about it?

They landed and checked in with the SHIELD agents on the ground. There was still no response from inside the crashed ship, so they decided to work on opening it up. Tony began using modified repulsor rays to cut through the ship’s hull.

And that’s when all hell broke loose.

The ship fired a concussive pulse of energy, knocking everyone backwards, and a team of skrulls burst from the ship, firing weapons and scattering.

“What a relief, they all survived,” said Tony, as SHIELD agents and the Avengers jumped into pursuit.

Natasha chased the two skrulls closest to her, taking one out right away with a well-placed shot. The other gave her more trouble, leading her on a chase through the streets and grazing her with his weapon before finally making the mistake of fleeing up a metal staircase. Natasha applied her widow’s bite to the metal and electrocuted him.

“I got my two,” said Natasha over the comm, once she had handcuffed the surviving skrull. “One dead, one alive. How are you guys doing?”

“Hulk could use some help,” said Tony. “Hide and seek isn’t his forte.”

“On my way,” she said, and headed towards the unmistakable sound of Hulk smashing. A flash of green and gold caught her eye, and she turned to see a dozen Lokis surrounding a vanquished skrull, then flickering and fading away to leave the real Loki standing alone with his back to her. Then he suddenly jerked forward.

“Loki!” she called out and ran towards him. “Are you hit?”

He turned, startled for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed and he looked at her coldly. “No.”

“I - I thought….”

“Cancel that last, Natasha,” came Tony’s voice, “Thor got the last of them and SHIELD is cleaning up. Everyone return to the ship.”

“Roger that,” said Natasha. Pride stinging, she walked back without a backwards glance at Loki.

\---------------------

“Here you go,” Natasha said, handing Hawkeye a mug of ginger tea with honey. He was in bed, just as sneezy and feverish as she had been a few days ago.

"Wait a sec....Hurschchchhh! HurCHOOO! Ahhh...thanks," he said, taking the tea. “You know, I thought you were crazy when you let Loki cast that spell on you. But now....I kinda get it. This sucks.”

“I know, hon. I’m sorry.”

“How’s it going with the Norse God of Emo, anyway?”

Natasha sighed. She might as well admit it. “It got weird, Clint. Real weird.”

"That’s a shocker,” he said with a laugh. “Sorry. What happened?"

“Last night I called to say good night, and he told me he wanted ‘a break’. Then this morning he makes a point of not looking at me or talking to me unless he absolutely has to, and when he does, he makes it clear it’s the last thing he wants to do."

"Well, told you he was a dick," said Clint.

"Yeah, thanks,” Natasha said sarcastically. “I mean, it’s fine. Being ghosted is one of the best outcomes I could have hoped for, considering this is Loki. It’s just - " she sighed. “I mean it hurts, and I feel stupid for feeling hurt, but it’s more than that. It seems...wrong.”

"Wrong?"

"Like there’s something else going on. He was so sweet and affectionate, and then this sudden change. Something about it doesn’t make sense."

"Nat, he's a sociopath," he said, reaching for tissues and blowing his nose. "Sociopaths can charm the pants off you when they want to, then they're assholes. Then they turn on the charm again, and that's how they hook you. You know this stuff. That's who he is."

"I know," said Natasha, but something inside her still wasn't satisfied with that explanation.

\--------------------------------

Natasha dove into her work - the interminable strategic plan for SHIELD - and forbade herself from thinking about Loki. But her mind kept coming back to it, kept trying to work the problem. But there was no problem, she told herself. It was over, and that was that. She wasn't going to lose any sleep over it. Honestly, it was for the best, and she was annoyed with herself for continuing to feel hurt at all.

But he was so sweet, and they had such a good time together.

_ Not relevant,  _ she told herself. _ Typical pattern for a sociopath. _

But i gave him a choice, asked if he wanted to be done, and he said he saw no reason to stop.

_Confusion and ambivalence about intimacy. Not unusual._

But it wasn't just me. He was acting strangely with everyone.

_ You're rationalizing. _

He didn't speak to anyone else on the way there or back, either. Not even Thor.

_Could be some general emotional panic and shut-down around intimacy._

Now _you're_ rationalizing. You're so ashamed of feeling hurt that you aren't looking at it clearly.

_ Stop thinking about this! _

She let out a breath of frustration. Fine, then. She calmed her thoughts, let her mind drift over the events of the past 24 hours, and asked herself the question she would ask if she were in the field: what sticks out in this situation? What are the little things, no matter how minor, that seem out of place?

The sudden change in attitude. The fact that he wouldn't even talk to Thor. Now that she thought about it, he seemed off during the fight with the skrulls. Not at the top of his game. Then there was the moment when she thought he’d been shot. His body had sort of silently convulsed for a moment. What was that? It almost looked like….

...a sneeze, she realized. It looked exactly like a sneeze.

Suddenly pieces started sliding together. "Jarvis, welfare check on Loki."

"Loki Laufeyson has a viral upper respiratory infection and a fever of 101.6 degrees."

\------------------------------------

Natasha steeled herself as the stood in front of Loki's door. She really did not know how this was going to go. She had a pretty good idea of what was going on, but she wanted to hear it from him, if he would tell her. She hit the comm button.

"Loki? I need to talk to you."

"This is not a good time," he replied through the comm.

"It's time sensitive. Ten minutes, Loki. Please."

The door hissed open, and there was Loki, looking healthy but none too pleased.

"Well?"

"You don't want me saying this in the hallway."

"Fine." He stepped aside to let her in, and closed the door. "What is so very urgent?"

"I know you're sick - Jarvis confirmed it,” she said, before he could deny it. “And I’d like to know why you’re hiding it.”

Loki stared back at her with mixed emotions warring in his eyes. For a moment she thought he was going to throw her out. Finally he looked down, and a golden shimmer flickered over his form and the room around him as he dispelled his illusion. His eyes were watery, his nose red, and tissues were scattered over every surface.

"Don't tell Thor about this," he said, in a hoarse and stuffy voice.

“He doesn't know you're sick?"

"He doesn't know I _get_ sick." And he turned away and sort of collapsed onto his bed. Natasha followed and sat down next to him. "Asgardian gods don't. But as you know, I'm not Asgardian at all," he said bitterly. "I'm a frost giant. And frost giants are susceptible to illness. For most of my life, I thought it was a weakness unique to me among my people. Now I know the truth."

The easiest type of interrogation, Natasha thought. The one where they wanted to tell you everything all along. "But you grew up together. How can he not know?"

"I hid it," he said. "It was one of the first illusions I learned. I was always weaker than him, always different, and I hated it. I didn't want anyone else to know, especially him."

"Then Loki," she said, "Why did you do the spell for me? Why take the risk of getting sick?"

“Because I didn’t think I would,” he said. "I only get sick every decade or so. Believe me, if I'd known I was going to catch this, I would have avoided you like the not-so-proverbial plague," he said, resentfully.

It wasn't a complete answer, but Natasha drew on her psychological profile of him to fill in the blanks. Contrary people like Loki were often drawn to the same things they feared and hated. Loki liked that spell because it gave him power over illness. He could be charmed by Natasha's vulnerability at the same time as he despised his own, and give her the attention he could not seek for himself. He could act as if he were invulnerable to illness...until he wasn't.

Natasha laid her hand gently on his forehead. She wasn't sure he'd allow it, but he did. She smoothed his hair. Then he sat up, breath hitching and reaching for the tissues. "Atchooo! Atchshhoo, Atchoo, atchooooo!"

"Bless you."

He blew his nose and then his eyes half closed again, mouth fell open, suspended for a moment. "eh..ATCHOOOOOO!" he sneezed forcefully. He blew his nose again and then fell back onto the bed with a slight groan. "I feel terrible,” he confessed.

“I know,” she said, suppressing a smile. She brushed a lock of hair away from his sweat-dampened face. “You know, you should have just told me.”

“Well,” Loki sighed, “That wouldn’t be me.”  
  
“I guess not. But now that I know, how about I try to make you feel better?”

“You can’t,” he said.

“Don’t underestimate me. Besides, sometimes it’s nice just to have someone try.”

“Because it shows they care?” asked Loki, with a hint of mischief returning to his fever-glazed eyes. “Do you care about me, Agent Romanoff?”

“Little bit, Loki,” she responded with a wry smile. “Don’t let it go to your head.” And she leaned over and kissed him.

……………………..

The next morning, Natasha sat down in the kitchen, drinking coffee and doing final edits on the strategic plan. She was still basking in the rosy glow of early morning sex. After a rather sweet night in which Loki allowed Natasha to fetch him tea and tissues and generally look after him, Loki had woken up feeling...much better. She smiled at the memory of it, even as she typed. Whatever was going on between them, it was definitely now “a thing”. Then Thor walked in.

"Natasha," he said. "How are you?"

"I'm good, cold’s better and I’m almost done with this project, thank God."

"Good," he said. "Natasha...did you know that Loki is ill?"

Natasha stared at him, surprised. "You know?"

"Yes, I always know when he's ill." He shook his head, regretfully. "It's my fault he hides it. When we were small, I once made fun of him for being sick, and after that he began to use magic to disguise it. Of course he wasn't as good at it then. Our mother told me never to say a word to him because he was sensitive about it. So I pretended not to notice. His illusions are perfect now, but I can tell by the way he acts. How does he fare?"

"Much better, his fever’s down. He went back to sleep. Said he thought he’d be over it by tonight."

"Good," he said. "He does recover quickly, much more so than a mortal. But still...take care of him, Natasha."

"Will do."

"Oh and about that human resources training - "

"You're still going, Thor," she said, and turned back to her computer.   
\-------------------------------

**Mid-Credits Scene: Two days later, In Loki's room**

"Come on Loki, I'm dying here," said Tony. "...ah....ATCHOOOOOO!"

"Gesundheit," said Lok

"Thanks," he said, swiping at his nose. “But I'm pretty sure that's not the magic word. Nat won’t mind, if that’s what you’re worried about. Very broad-minded girl.”

“Yes, she is,” he said with a smile. “In fact, I suspect she’ll want a detailed description. Very well then, come here,” he said.

"So, are we talking about a little peck on the cheek...?” Tony asked as he approached, suddenly a bit nervous. “Or just a little, you know, dry kind of..."

"No," Loki smiled, placing his hands around Tony's waist, drawing him near. He spoke the incantation and gave Tony a deep kiss. Tony immediately wrapped his arms around Loki, pressing their bodies together while kissing him passionately. Then Loki ended the kiss and stepped away, leaving Tony panting with desire.

"Tony. You're going to see Pepper now," he said.

"Oh. Yeah, of course. Pepper." Tony said with a glazed, dazed look in his eyes.

"She does know about this, doesn't she?"

"Sure she does," his hands drifting back towards Loki's waist. "So you don't...?"

"I really was just trying to help," he said, turning Tony towards the door, which slid open for him.

"Yeah. Sure. Appreciate it, bud."

"Right, off you go now."  
  
"OK..."

"It's that way, Tony."

"Got it."

"Bye now. Have fun."

\-----------------

Post-Credits scene:

  
Tony, Loki, and Thor are sitting around a table looking morose. Dr. Strange starts up a power point presentation entitled Sex Magic and Informed Consent in the Workplace, and Pepper hands out packets to everyone.

 

 


End file.
